Dispensing apparatus for roll material.



C. F. RANDALL.

DISPENSING APPARATUS FOR ROLL MATERIAL.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. I8. I914.

Pamented Oct. 17,1916.

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' C. F. RANDALL.

DISPENSING APPARATUS FOR ROLL MATERIAL.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 18, 1914.

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' c. F. RANDALL. DISPENSING APPARATUS {OR ROLL MATERIAL.

APPLICATION FILED NOV- I8. 19 i4.

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APPLICATION FILED NOV. 1a, 1914.

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CHARLES F. RANDALL, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE GEORGE T.

JOHNSON COMPANY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSA- CHUSETTS.

DISPENSING APPARATUS FOR ROLL MATERIAL.

Patented Oct. 17,1916.

Application filed November 18, 1914;. Serial No. 872,712.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CnAnLns F. RANDALL, a citizen ofthe, United States, residing at Eoston, in the county of Sufiolk, State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Dispensing Apparatus for Roll Material, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

The invention relates to apparatus of the general class designed to enable successive short lengths to be taken from the outer end of a continuous strip or web that has been wound into a roll.

More especially, it has relation to apparatus of those kinds which are constructed to check the revolution of the supply roll after it has revolved a predetermined distance in unwinding, so as, by the checking, to render a pull of the user upon the free end of the strip or web effective in causing the parting of the strip or web, usually at a transverse line of weakness, whereby to detach a portion which has been unwound from the roll. Such apparatus has been proposed for use in dispensing or serving toilet paper and paper toweling.

In the case of prior constructions employed in practice, so far as known to me, the roll always revolves to the same extent before being checked at every unwinding op eration. From this it results that the lengths of material that are paid off from the roll at successive unwinding operations vary according to the varying diameter of the wound supply. Vith a full roll, the latter being of its largest diameter and consequently having its largest peripheral measurement, the length of material paid off by the roll in revolving to a given extent in unwinding will be very much greater than the length which will be paid off when the wound mass has become substantially exhausted so that its diameter and consequently its peripheral measurement are much smaller. This lack of uniformity in the lengths successively paid out is objectionable, because when the roll placed in an apparatus of one of the prior constructions is of the usual commercial size and has lines of weakness spaced at the usual distance part, the length of material which is paid off therefrom at first by an unwinding operatirn is excessir e, and may include two or more successive lines of weakness, resulting in the detaching of more than the intended length of the material, whereas before the roll has become exhausted the length paid off by an unwinding operation is shorter than is desired and the next line of weakness does not leave the wound mass. When the line of weakness has not left the wound body of the roll, the detachment of the drawn-off portion is difficult and usually can be effected only by tearing the material across its width at some place shortof the said line of weakness.

A general object of the invention is to so improve the mode of operation of dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material as to obviate the paying-out of a needlessly great length of material at an unwinding operation while the roll is full or approximately full, and the paying-out of a deficient length as the roll approaches exhaustion. I aim to avoid, when material having transverse lines of weakness at regular intervals apart is employed, the paying-out of the web past two or more successive lines of weakness in the case of a full roll and the stopping short of paving-out to the first line of weakness as the roll approaches exhaustion.

The invention provides a dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material, having a movable device controlling the extent of the unwinding revolution of the wound supply for the purpose of a service, with the said device combined and coordinated to insure substantial uniformity in the length of material paid out at each unwinding operation. The said device provides for a proportionately increased extent of paying-out for the purpose of a service as the wound supply diminishes in diameter, thereby insuring the unwinding of the proper amount for a service from the partially or substantially exhausted roll. The invention is applicable equally, whether the unwinding is effected by power applied to the roll itself or its support for. the purpose of producing an unwinding revolution of the roll, or by a pulll upon the outer extremity of the materia One' feature of the invention consists in automatically controlling the action of the movable controlling device by the diameter of the wound supply contained in the roll, although, in its broadest phase, the invention includes the employment of mechanical devices actuated or controlled through the unwinding revolution of the wound supply to effect automatic adjustment of the said. device. Such mechanical devices may read ily be applied for the desired purpose by a skilled. mechanic.

The invention includes a controlling device in the form of a .movable checking device for the unwinding revolution of the wound supply, controlled as to the time of its checking action at successive unwinding actions by the size of the supply and operating to substantially equalize the deliveries to the inner end of the wound web. It includes also provisions for calling a check or controlling device into action through the rotation of the roll in unwinding. It includes also a movable controlling device which acts axially of the roll; also, a movable controlling device which is called into action through axial movement of the roll;

also, a movable controlling device which acts against the periphery of the wound supply.

' The axial device and the peripheral device may be employed separately, although in certain embodiments of the invention they are employed in conjunction. Usually, when thus employed the two devices have a mutual control over each other.

The invention c0mprises, further, various other improvements which are described and claimed hereinafter.

The leading principles of the invention admit of being embodied variously, and hence the broad features of the invention are not restricted with respect to the specific mode and form of embodiment.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional view of certain portions of a dispensing apparatus containing one embodiment of the features and principles of the invention. Fig.2 is a view in vertical section in the plane of dotted line 2, 2, of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the core or carrier of the supply-roll shown in Figs. 1 and 2, looking from the lefthand side in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a sectional view showing the application of compensating or equalizing devices like those of Figs. 1 and 2 at the end of the roll opposite that at which the devices are applied in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 5 is a sectional detail view showing another embodiment of features of the invention. Figs. 6 and 7 are views in section on' lines 6, 6, and 7, 7, of

Fig. 5. Figs. 8, 9 and 10 are views similar to Figs. 5, 6 and 7, showing another embodiment. F 1g. 11 1s a vlew in section on line 11, 11, of Fig. 1. Fig. 12 is a sectional view of a modification of the feature illustrated in Fig. 11.

Having reference to the drawings, certain embodiments of the principles and features of the invention are shown in Figs. 1 and 2 applied in connection with an apparatus and roll material on the order of those forming the subjects-matter of the U. S. Letters Patent to G. T. Johnson, No. 1,093,334, dated April 14, 1914, and No. 1,097,327, dated May 19, 1914. Referring first to the apparatus in general :At 2 is a portion of one of the side-arms of the apparatus, it carrying the transversely extending shaft 8 having a quick screw-thread. Shaft 8 is bored out for the greater portion of its length, and within the bore is contained the smooth rod or shaft-portion 9 of smaller diameter than the said threaded shaft 8. Rod or shaftportion 9 is made fast by its inner end within the bore of shaft 8. At 10 is a longitudinally compressible expanding spiral spring which surrounds the said smooth shaft-portion 9, it extending'within the bore to the inner end of the latter, and at 11 is a collar loosely mounted upon the same shaftportion at the outer end of the said spiral spring and in engagement with the latter. By boring out the threaded shaft 8 and causing the spring 10 to extend within the bore I am enabled to employ a spring of sufficient length and at the same time provide for the lengthwise compression of the spring by the longitudinal movement of the roll during its unwinding revolution. At 15 is a roll of paper wound upon a cylindrical core or carrier 16 having the disks 17, 18, the said disk 17 having the central eye thereof fitted upon the spirally-threaded portion 8 of the shaft, with the curled edge-portions of such eye (Figs. 1 and 6) engaged with the spiral thread after the manner of a nut-element, and the disk 18 having its central eye occupied by a portion of the collar 11. As in the patents aforesaid, the spring 10 actslongitudinally against the collar 11 to keep the latter engaged with the disk 18, and by its transmitted pressure tends to keep the roll at the right-hand side (in Fig. 1) of the apparatus, and to return the roll toward that side after having been moved toward the lefthand side, as soon as the roll is free to be returned. As in the patents also, when the free end of the wound material is pulled upon by the user so as to draw off a portion of the length of such material, the consequent rotation of the roll operates through the engagement of nut-element 17 with the spirally-threaded shaft 8 to produce travel of the roll endwise toward the left-hand side of the apparatus, thereby compressing the spring lengthwise, so that the stored-up tension of the spring may operate to return the roll endwise in the opposite direction as soon as permitted to act. At m is a stop against which the endwise travel of the roll toward the left carries the advancing end of the roll and the disk 17 (or it might be some other part in connection with the roll) to arrest such endwise travel and consequently check the unwinding turning movement of the roll, so that as a result of such arrest and check the continued pull upon the end of the wound material will cause the portion that has paid off from the wound supply to part.

As thus far set forth, the construction and mode of operation are essentially, as in the patents, although a stop as outstanding from the side-arm is not shown therein. The parts, etc., not herein shown and described may be as in the patents, or otherwise as preferred.

Turning now to the improvements comprised in the invention :In the apparatus of Figs. 1 and 2 the stop w is movable lengthwise of shaft 8 and is controlled automatically so as to permit the roll to move endwise slightly farther from its starting position at successive unwinding actions before arrest of the unwinding revolution takes place. As the extent of the unwinding revolution of the roll in agiven unwinding action, and consequently the length of material paid-off, is determined by the distance which the roll is permitted to travel endwise in revolving, the result of permitting increasing endwise movement of the roll at successive unwinding actions is to permit correspondingly increased extents of unwinding revolution of the roll. By increasing the extent to which the roll is permitted to travel endwise in a proper ratio to the decrease in the size of the wound supply, there will be permitted an increase in the extent of the unwinding revolution of the roll that will render the lengths that are unwound at different times substantially uniform. The movable mounting of the stop w is provided for in Figs. 1 and 2 by fitting the said stop with a loose sliding fit upon the spirally threaded shaft 8 and in a hole in the inner side-portion of the shell of arm 2, so that it is apable of being shifted along the said shaft. The automatic control of the stop is provided for by means of levers a and b, the lever a engaging with the stop, while lever Z) engages with the lever a and is arranged also to cooperate directly with the periphery of the wound supply. Through such cooperation the diameter of the wound supply controls the position occupied by the stop as at the time when it terminates the endwise travel of the roll. Lever a is engaged with the" stop 00 by providing said lever with a fork that embraces partly the said stop, the fork-arms having projections which enter a groove :12 extending around the stop, so that movement communicated to either the lever a or the stop is transmitted from the one to the other, and so that when the lever a is held from movement it holds the stop from movement. The levers a and b are engaged with each other by means of a fork by which the short outer arm of lever Z) is provided, the said fork receiving in its slot a transverse pin a carried by lever a, the said short arm entering between opposite branches into which the body-portion of the lever a is.

divided. The lever a is pivotally mounted within the arm 2 by means of pivots a, a, in connection with the said branches of its body-portion. The lever b is mounted upon a pivot Z) between bosses projecting inwardly from opposite portions of the shell of arm 2. The long arm of lever 6 extends toward the middle of the length of, the apparatus so that the free extremity of the said arm, and a swiveling shoe or presser b carried thereby, are adapted to occupy a position alongside the periphery of the wound supply 15. The stop 00 is held normally in its innermost position shown in Fig. 1, with the long arm of lever b and its shoe or presser at their greatest distance from the roll-axis, by means of a wire-spring c having its ends engaged with pins or projections 0, 0, extending inward from the shell of arm 2, its coils surrounding the bosses of said shell between which the lever Z) is pivoted, and its outstanding middle portion engaged with the short arm of lever 12. The said spring acts through such engagement with a tendency to hold said short arm in contact with a stop, constituted in this in stance by the inwardly located side of the shell of the arm 2, with the long arm and its shoe or presser, and the stop as, in the positions occupied by them in Fig. 1. In the positions of rest of the roll and the different parts of the apparatus, the shoe or presser b is separated from the surface of the wound material, so that it offers no resist ance to the turning of the roll when the exposed end 15 of the material is grasped and pulled upon by the user.

In operation, when the exposed end 15", Fig. 2, of the wound material is pulled upon, the roll is revolved thereby, and in revolving travels to the left in consequence of the engagement of the eye-portion of nut-element 17 with the spiral thread of shaft 8. This endwise travel of the roll compresses the spring 10 surrounding the rod 9. By the continued pulling-off of the said material and consequent revolution and endwise travel of the roll, some portion in connection with the advancing end of the roll (either the nut-element 17 or the end of the core 16, or the end of the wound. mass of material) is caused to contact with the end-stop 00. As in the prior patents mentioned above, this contact is effective in terminating the end-travel of the roll and its unwinding revolution and occasioning the parting of the material at a line of weakening that has passed off from the body of the roll. When first pressed against by the end of the roll, the end-stop a: is pushed outward until by the movement communicated to levers a, b, the shoe or presser b is borne against the periphery of the wound material. By this action the tension of spring 0 is increased.

WVhen the shoe or presser can move no farther toward the roll-axis the end-stop 00 becomes immovable and thereby the endwise movement of the roll is arrested. Consequently, the unwinding revolution of the roll is terminated, and the pull by the user upon the portion of the material that is held in his hand causes the material to part at the line of weakening that has been paid-0E from the roll by the unwinding, as just mentioned. As soon. as the parting occurs, springs a and 10 will act to move the levers, stop, and roll reversely, thereby relieving the pressure of the shoe or presser 6 upon the periphery of the wound material, restoring the levers and end-stop to their normal positions, and moving the roll reversely endwise along shaft 8 (With a reversely revolving movement) to its starting position so as to separate the roll and end-stop from each other. Not only is the end-stop 0a instrumental in checking the unwinding revolution of the roll of material but the lever Z) and its shoe operate to the said end. The pressure of the said lever and shoe toward the surface of the wound supply caused by the outward pressure of the endwise moving roll against the end-stop, has its own checking effect, quite suflicient in itself to arrest the unwinding revolution of the roll and bring about the parting of the unwound material at a line of weakening. Thus the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2 combines not only an axial check, automatically adjusted in its checking action to correspond with the diameter of the wound supply, but a peripheral check similarly adjusted. The two principles of checking admit of being regarded either separately or conjointly.

The construction which has been described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2 compensates for reduction in the diameter of the wound supply by varying the position of an endstop so as to vary the stopping point for the endwise movement of the roll, the starting point remaining always the same. Fig. 4: shows a construction providing for a progressively increased extent of the endwise movement of the roll by means of a variable starting point, controlled by the diameter of the wound. supply, the stopping point for the endwise movement remaining always the same. In Fig. fl: the end-stop 00 against which the advancing end of the endwisemoving roll brings up has no movement lengthwise of the spirally-threaded shaft. An automatically-adjusting stop w at the opposite end of the roll, serving to determine the starting position of the latter, by its automatic adjustment secures the proportionately increasing extent of endwise movement of the roll. The starting-position stop 00 is mounted upon the extended support 14 carried by the side-arm 2 The said support 14 is made longer than the similarly designated boss in the prior patents hereinbefore mentioned, in order to accommodate the startingposition stop and permit the required extent of movement of the same in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the roll. The stop a has combined therewith levers 64 ,6 the latter provided with a shoe or presser b for making contact with the periphery of the wound supply, the construction and mode of engagement of the parts with one another being essentially the same as in the case of the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The spring 0 of the latter figures may be omitted, or if such a spring is employed, one, 0*, Weaker than the spring 10 is employed so as not to interfere with the action of the spring 10 in returning the roll to its starting position. As the spring 10 thus acts, the end of the roll which is presented to the starting position stop 00 engages with the said stop and carries the same ahead of the roll until by the turning movement of the levers the shoe or presser takes firm bearing against the periphery of the wound supply. As the wound supply decreases in diameter, the return movement of the roll to startingposition will carry the said stop progressively farther to the right, thereby providing for an increase in the extent of the longitudinal traverse of the roll proportioned to the decrease in the diameter of the wound supply.

Figs. 5, 6 and 7 show means for securing the equalizing or compensating action combined in a construction of dispensing apparatus in which the supply-roll revolves without having an endwise traverse. A differential traverse is communicated to a movable stop device instead. This construction in cludes a shaft comprising the squared shaftsection 19 and the sleeve-section 20. One end of the supply-roll is shown mounted upon the squared shaft-section 19 with the central disk 17, heretofore termed a nutelement, against a collar 21 at the junction of the said shaft-section and the sleevesection. The square eye of the said nut-element l7 fits the said square shaft-section so as to compel the shaft and roll to revolve in unison. The sleeve-section 20 is fitted upon a long stud 21 fixed by its outer end in a boss 22 projecting from the interior of the sidearm 2 of the apparatus. The sleeve-section is prevented from moving endwise along the supporting stud 21 by means of a screw 22 occupying a threaded hole in the shell of the sleeve-section with its inner end working in an annular groove 23 around the stud. A clock-spring 24: has its inner end engaged. with the outer portion of the sleeve-section and its outer end engaged with a fixed pin 25 carried by side-arm 2 the said spring tending to keep the shaft and roll turned into a normal starting position. I employ in the case of this construction a stop 02 arranged to act by relative movement axially of the roll, and made effective by the unwinding revolution of the roll to check the said revolution. The said stop is mounted upon the exterior of the sleeve-section 20 of the shaft with capacity for movement in the direction of the length of the shaft, and is given such movement as the shaft revolves to cause it to check the unwinding revolution at the proper point in such revolution, through engagement with a spiral thread or screw with which the sleeve-section is provided. This spiral thread or screw is constituted in the present instance by a spiral groove that is formed in the sleeve-section, such groove being entered by the inner end of a screw 26 carried by the stop. The stop is held from rotating with the spirallythreaded sleeve-section in some convenient manner permitting. movement of the stop axially of the roll, as by means of a feather 27 carried by the side-arm and working in a longitudinal groove 28 formed in the stop. The arrangement of the spring and direction of the spiral groove in the sleeve-section are such that the spring tends to turn the shaft so as to keep the stop in an outward position and pressed against a shoulder or collar 29 upon the outer end of the sleeve, this being the normal position of the stop, and so that'when the shaft is revolved in the direction to pay out material from a roll thereon, the stop will be caused to move inward toward the adjacent end of the roll and at the same time the spring will be wound up. By this inward movement the stop will be carried into engagement with the adjacent end of the roll, or with the collar 21, as preferred, and will arrest the unwinding revolution of the roll. When the paid-off material is parted so as to render the roll and shaft free to revolve under the action of the spring, the latter will revolve them reversely and thereby move the stop outward again to its starting position. The compensating or equalizing is provided for in the case of this construction by means of the lever a pivoted at a within the sidearm 2 and carrying by one arm the shoeor presser I), while its other arm is forked and engaged with the stop by means of projections working in the groove m around the stop. Through this lever the starting position of the stop is controlled by means of the diameter of the volume of material. At the time of applying a roll to the shaft, the lever is moved by hand so as to carry its inner end far enough away from the shaft to permit the roll to he slipped into place. This movement of the lever moves the stop inward part way, winding up the spring somewhat. As soon as the roll is in place, the lever is released, whereupon the tendency of the clock-spring to unwind will rotate the roll and shaft reversely, moving the stop outwardly and swinging the lever reversely by such outward movement so as to cause the shoe or presser to bear upon the periphery of the wound supply. When the shoe or presser takes bearing upon the said periphery, the outward movement of the stop will be arrested. In the case of a roll of the diameter indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 5, the starting position of the stop isas indicated by dotted lines, so that a comparatively short movement of the stop inward will carry it into engagement with the adjacent end of the roll or with collar 21, and thereby terminate the unwinding revolution of the roll. As the roll grows less in diameter, the stop will be shifted farther and farther outward by the action of the clockspring in recoiling, thereby increasing the distance it will have to travel before engaging with the end of the roll or with collar 21, and correspondingly increasing the ex tent to which the roll is permitted to revolve in unwinding. The inward movement of the stop during the paying-off action occasions a turning movement of the lever by which the shoe or presser is moved away from the periphery of the wound supply. The recovery movement of the stop is accompanied by a reverse turning movement of the lever which moves the shoe or presser inward into contact with the periphery of the wound supply.

Figs. 8, 9 and 10 show a construction resembling that'of Figs. 5, 6 and 7 in the main but differing therefrom in having a spiral groove or thread in the sleeve-section 20 which is reversed relative to that in the sleeve-section 20 of Figs. 5, 6, and 7. The mode of operation is therefore somewhat different. The spring 2% tends to cause the stop 00 to occupy the dotted'line position at the inner end of the sleeve-section, with the levera in a position which separates its shoe or presser b widely from the periphery of the wound supply. When-the'end of the material is pulled upon so as to unwind some of the material from the wound supply, the unwinding revolution of the roll is accompanied by a revolution of the sleeve-section causing the stop a to travel outward and the lever a to swing until shoe or presser I) strikes against the periphery of the wound supply. In this action the diameter of the wound supply at the time of the paying-oif action determines the extent of the swinging movement of lever a, the outward. movement of the stop 00, and consequently the unwinding revolution of the wound supply. The parting of the paid-off material at a line of weakening permits the spring 24 to revolve the shaft and roll reversely so as to restore the stop 02 and lever a and shoe or presser Z) to their starting positions.

It may happen sometimes that in the case end-portion of the shaft.

of a dispensing apparatus embodying features of the present invention the axial stop device may come into action before a line of weakening has passed off from the roll. In Figs. 1 and 11 the shaft 8 is connected with the outer portion of the shell of the side arm 2 by means of an axially-disposed screw 40 in such manner as to provide for a turning movement or revolution of the said shaft around its longitudinal axis. It is held from rotation under ordinary conditions by means of a braking device comprising a series of brake-shoes 41, 41, 41, surrounding the outer Projections 42, 42, 42, extend radially from the shaft between the said shoes, so that if the shaft turns it will carry the shoes around with it. Expanding spiral springs 43, 43, 43, confined between the shoes operate to expand the group so as to cause their curved exterior surfaces to bear against the inner surface of a circular flange 44 that is formed upon the interior of the outer portion of the shell of the side-arm. The frictional engagement between the shoes and the flange holds the shaft 8 from turning under ordinary conditions. When, however, the advancing end of the roll encounters the stop 00 and brings up firmly thereagainst before the next line of weakening has passed off from the wound supply, the continued pull upon the end of the material in the grasp of the user will cause the shaft 8 to turn bodily until such line of weakening has arrived in proper position to enable the parting of the leading portion of material to occur. In Fig. 12 the stop a? is backed up by an expanding spiral spring 46, which may be employed in lieu of the spring 0 of Figs. 1 and 2.

Various other changes and modifications admit of being made embodying the broad principles and features of the invention.

From the foregoing it will be perceived that an important feature included within the invention is a stop or check made effective by relative movement between the same and the roll axially of the roll to check the rotation of the latter when substantially the predetermined amount for a single service has been paid off from the roll by the user, said stop or check varying progressively the time of its action to accord with the remaining amount of the wound supply. Another important feature included within the invention is a stop or check actuated through axial movement of the roll and caused thereby to act against the periphery of the wound supply to check the unwinding revolution of the roll. Another important feature is the combination of the axial stop or check with the peripheral stop or check, the former actuating the latter. It has been explained that the axial stop or check may be arranged to act at the advancing end of the roll as it unwinds, to arrest the unwinding revolution when substantially the predetermined amount for a service has been unwound, or it may be arranged to act at the other end to vary the starting position of the roll. In either case the result is the same, namely the axial stop or check controls the length of the axial or longitudinal travel of the roll in unwinding, and thereby provides for a substantially uniform delivery.

I claim as my invention 1. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a movable checking device for the unwinding revolution of the wound roll, and means for controlling the same as to the time of its checking action at successive unwinding actions by the size of the supply.

2. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a movable checking device for the unwinding revolution, and means for calling the same into action through the rotation of the roll in unwinding, and controlling the time of its action by the size of the roll.

3. A dispensing or serving. apparatus for roll material having a checking device and means whereby said device is called into action axially of the roll through the rotation of the latter in unwinding and controlled as to the time of its action by the size of the roll.

4. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a movable checking device for the unwinding revolution, and means whereby said device is called into action against the wound supply through the rotation of the latter in unwinding.

5. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a movable checking device for the unwinding revolution, and means whereby said device is called into action against the periphery of the wound supply through the rotation of the latter in unwinding.

- 6. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having movable checking devices for the unwinding revolution which act respectively axially of the Wound supply and radially thereof, controlled as to the time of their checking action at successive unwinding operations by the size of the said supply.

7. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a movable checking device for the unwinding operation of the wound roll controlled as to the time of its checking action at successive unwinding actions by the size of the roll, and means for automatically causing recovery of normal starting relations following detachment of paid-out length.

8. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a movable checking device for the unwinding revolution, called into action through the rotation of the roll in unwinding and controlled as to the time of its action by the size of the wound supply, and means for automatically causing recovery of normal starting relations following detachment of paid-out length.

9. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a checking device called into action axially of the roll through the rotation of the latter in unwinding, and controlled as to the time of its action by the size of the roll, and means for automatically causing recovery of normal starting relations following detachment of paid-out length.

10. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a movable checking device for the unwinding revolution, called into action against the wound supply through the rotation of the latter in unwinding, and means for automatically causing recovery of normal starting relations following detachment of paid-out length.

11. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having a movable checking device for the unwinding revolution, called into action against the periphery of the wound supply through the rotation of the latter in unwinding, and means for automatically causing recovery of normal starting relations following detachment of paid-out length.

12. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having movable checking devices for the unwinding revolution which act respectively axially of the wound supply and radially thereof, controlled as to the time of their checking action at successive unwinding operations by the size of the said supply, and means for automatically causing recovery of normal starting relations following detachment of paid-out length.

13. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material in which the roll moves longitudinally as it revolves in paying-out the said material, having a movable device for checking the unwinding revolution of the roll, made effective by the longitudinal movement of the roll, and controlled as to the time of its checking action by the volume of the supply.

1 1. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material in which the roll moves longitudinally as it revolves in paying-out the said material, having a device for checking the unwinding revolution of the roll by action axially of the roll, called into action by the longitudinal movement of the roll, and controlled as to the time of its checking action by the volume of the supply.

15. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material in which the roll moves longitudinally as it revolves in paying-out the said material, having a checking device for the unwinding revolution made effective against the wound supply itself through the longitudinal movement of the roll.

16. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material in which the roll moves longitudinally as it revolves in paying-out the said material, having a checking device made effective against the periphery of the wound supply through longitudinal movement of the roll.

17. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material in which the roll moves longitudinally as it revolves in paying-out the said material, having checking devices for the unwinding revolution which act respectively axially of the wound supply and radially thereof, made efiectivc through the longitudinal movement of the roll, and contomatically adjustable in its action so as to equalize the paying-out.

19. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material having means operative at an end of the roll at a predetermined time in the unwinding revolution of the roll to check such revolution and thereby occasion parting of the material, said means constructed to equalize the paying-out by proportioning the extent of the revolution for each unwinding action inversely to the size of the roll at the time.

20. A dispensing or serving apparatus in which the axis of rotation of the roll occupies a fixed location, having means to control the extent of the revolution of the roll at each unwinding action by the varying diameter of the wound supply so as to equalize the paying-out.

21. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material, having a movable device controlling the extent of the unwinding revolution of the wound supply for the purpose of a service, with the said device operatively combined to compensate for reduction in the diameter of the wound supply and secure substantial uniformity in the length of material paid out at successive unwinding operations.

22. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material in which the roll moves longitudinally as it revolves in paying-out the said material, having a movable device controlling the extent of the longitudinal movement and automatically varying the said extent to compensate for reduction in the diameter of the wound supply.

23. A dispensing or serving apparatus for roll material, having an automatically-adjusted movable device controlling the extent of the unwinding revolution of the wound '39 been paid out for a service, whereby by the automatic adjustment the Wound supply when diminished in diameter is permitted an increased extent of unwinding revolution for a delivery.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature 15 in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES F. RANDALL. Witnesses:

NATHAN B. DAY, ELLEN 0. SPRING.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. 'Washington, D. G. 

